I’ll never try to hide the fact that I’m often one to “jump the gun” on many-an-activity. Since third grade I’ve doing things like planning outfits for the first week of school a month in advance. The little quirk of mine has manifested itself in present day as an extreme excitement for seasonal baking!

So far this fall (all three days of it), I’ve experimented with a pumpkin bread, a pumpkin muffin, and a pumpkin cookie. I’m still working on the pumpkin bread and muffin, but boy do I love how fluffy and yummy these cookies turned out!…

Raise your hand if you or someone you know/ love/ you yourself is following a ketogenic diet! A ketogenic diet (often abbreviated as a “keto” diet) from my understanding, is a high fat, low carb diet that’s used in a variety of situations. Many people attempt to use the keto diet diet as a weight loss method. But, most of the people in my life who follow (or loosely follow) a keto diet, do so for health reasons. In some cases of diseases like Diabetes and Celiac disease, ketogenic diets can sometimes be helpful.

Let’s talk for a minute about classics. No, I’m not talking about MKTO’s hit song, despite the fact that it’s refusing to leave my mind as I write this post. What I’m (trying) to talk about, is dishes, or foods in general, that bring you back to your roots. Foods that just bring you a little bit of mental peace. Not necessarily “comfort foods,” but foods that give you comfort.

I know I wasn’t the only little girl who ate raw cookie dough by the spoonful while making cookies with my mom while growing up. In my house, most of the time the giant tub of cookie dough that we occasionally bought would never even end up getting baked before we would eat it all!

Thank goodness we’ve found more wholesome ways to curb our sweet tooths (sweet… teeth?), because it’s a lot healthier this way! I used chickpeas as the base in this recipe, which keeps them gluten-free, high-fiber, and high-protein! It’s my personal opinion that everyone in the world should be trying to eat more legumes (check out this AWESOME article).

In my years on this Earth I cannot recall a single bad thing that I’ve encountered thats started with the sound “Mac.” Macaroni, Macbooks, Macintosh apples… heck, I can’t even recall ever meeting a Mackenzie I didn’t like!

Macaroons are certainly not an exception to my rule of “Mac.” I’ve LOVED coconut macaroons ever since I was a little girl, and I was a huge Samoa promoter in my Girl Scouts Troop. Last week I got a hankering for these bad boys, so I decided it was time to whip up a recipe!

I know, I know… claiming to make ANYTHING better than Grandma can get kind of dicey…especially something that’s vegan. But this time, I think it’s legit.

I got the inspiration to make these vegan cookies as I snacked on an Oatmeal-Raisin flavored Lenny & Larry protein cookie after a class where my stomach would NOT stop rumbling. The “cookie”, while satisfying, tasted like a glorified protein bar. Thus I began my journey to create a vegan/delicious/not-terribly-bad-for-you oatmeal cookie to fill my newfound craving. Boy, am I happy I came up with these!

These guys are suuuper chewy and a little bit soft on the inside, but the outsides add a PERFECT crunch. The key to the chewy interior but crispier exterior is taking them out of the oven when they’re a just a little underdone, and letting them finish baking on the baking sheet after they get taken out of the oven.

I challenge you to bite into one of these and feel literally any bad emotion in the world, because I seriously don’t think it’s possible.

Another perk of this recipe was that I didn’t even have to go to the grocery store! And, my sweet tooth completely satisfied after having one (…or two) of these, even though the ingredient list isn’t conducive to most guilty-pleasure type of treats.

I’m so happy these cookies are in my life, and I hope they get to become a part of yours as well!

In a medium-sized bowl, whisk together sugars. Add applesauce and oil to sugar and whisk together until sugars are dissolved. Add flax egg and vanilla and whisk until well incorporated.

In another bowl, mix together the flour, oats, cinnamon, and baking soda. Add gradually into the other bowl and stir thoroughly until everything is mixed together. Add in dried fruit until it’s distributed evenly amongst the dough.

Scoop balls 1/4-1/3 of a cup big onto a Silpat-lined or parchment-lined baking sheet. Place in oven for 12-15 minutes, then remove from oven (they should look slightly raw in the middle but crispier on the outside). Let sit on baking sheet for AT LEAST 10 minutes before attempting to take them off. Enjoy!

Notes

*white flour will work as well

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Let me know if you make this, and tell me how you like it! Tag me on Instagram @cookwithcourt and #cookwithcourt

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